The National CFIDS
Foundation is pleased to
announce the latest grant
recipients from its Research
Grant Program. This grant
program has been very active
since its inception in 2002
with funding coming
exclusively from generous
donations by the CFS/ME
patient community. These
newest NCF research grants
total $186,000. With its
latest round of funding, the
NCF's research grant
recipients include
Konstance Knox, Ph.D.
and Donald Carrigan,
Ph.D., Yoshitsugi Hokama,
Ph.D., and Derek
Enlander, M.D.

Dr. Konstance Knox and
Dr. Donald Carrigan are
virologists with the
Institute for Viral
Pathogenesis in Milwaukee,
Wisconsin. They are
recipients of a $159,000 NCF
research grant titled “The
Potential Role of New
Infectious Agents in Chronic
Fatigue Syndrome.” At the
Institute for Viral
Pathogenesis, Dr. Knox and
Dr. Carrigan are actively
involved with the
identification and
characterization of new
human viral pathogens.
Exploring newly identified
viruses as emerging
pathogens and developing
effective treatments for
such viruses and the
diseases they cause is their
primary focus.

Dr. Knox and Dr. Carrigan
were past recipients of a
$35,000 NCF research grant
for the evaluation of the
Stat1 protein in CFS/ME
patients. The results of
this study were presented at
the Seventh International
AACFS Conference on Chronic
Fatigue Syndrome in Madison,
Wisconsin. In addition, Dr.
Knox and Dr. Carrigan have
assisted the NCF with
previous projects that
included research into the
roles of HHV-6A/B and HTLV-II
in CFS/ME. The NCF's HTLV-II
research built upon the
previous research efforts of
Dr. Elaine DeFreitas
from the Wistar Institute.
Gail Kansky commented “Drs.
Knox and Carrigan are highly
respected medical
scientists. Their extensive
work and effort into HHV-6
and its role in AIDS,
Multiple Sclerosis, and
CFIDS/ME is well known. We
are extremely pleased to be
able to provide them with
the largest NCF grant amount
ever offered to a research
team. We are very excited by
the scientific direction
provided by this grant!”

Dr. Yoshitsugi Hokama is
the recipient of a $25,000
NCF grant titled
“Verification of the Site 5
Sodium Channel Effect of the
Abnormal Lipid Found in
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Patient Sera.” Dr. Hokama is
a Professor in the
Department of Pathology at
the John A. Burns School of
Medicine at the University
of Hawaii at Manoa. He is a
world expert in the area of
fish toxins with hundreds of
peer reviewed publications
to his credit. Dr. Hokama
developed the Membrane
Immunobead Assay test for
patient sera, using a
specific monoclonal antibody
for ciguatera toxin (Mab-CTX).

Dr. Hokama has been the
recipient of three other NCF
research grants into the
role of the ciguatera
epitope in CFIDS/ME. His
other NCF grants totaled
$100,000. Dr. Hokama and his
team previously received a
$1 million dollar grant from
the National Institute of
Environmental Health
Sciences, a division of the
National Institutes of
Health (NIH), for his
research into ciguatera and
its association with
CFIDS/ME. The basis for this
NIH application was the
research completed for the
NCF on this epitope. The
ciguatera epitope has been
found in over 95% of the
patient sera. “Dr. Hokama's
expertise and insight has
proven to be invaluable. Dr.
Hokama has agreed to supply
his monoclonal antibody for
ciguatoxin to Dr. Knox and
Dr. Carrigan and to
collaborate with them for
their evaluation in their
virology research. The NCF
firmly believes that the
toxicology and virology will
overlap. As such, this is an
exciting time for the NCF to
be directly involved in this
research effort!” stated
Kansky.

Dr. Derek Enlander is the
recipient of a $2000 NCF
research grant for his
collaboration with Dr.
Jonathan Kerr on a “RNA
Gene Expression Study” for
CFIDS/ME patients. Dr.
Enlander is a private
physician in New York while
Dr. Kerr is a medical
researcher with St. George's
Hospital in London.

During a recent
interview, Gail Kansky
explained “The research
direction that the NCF has
taken is a cohesive one. It
is not a disjointed
approach. We are exploiting
the interconnectivity of the
science and we're getting
encouraging results. Let's
face it, it's difficult to
treat a disease whose cause
has yet to be appropriately
identified. Our approach has
always taken direct aim at
identification of the
underlying cause of this
disease and we believe that
we're on a direct collision
course at this point in
time. The results of this
latest research should prove
to be very revealing and
will bring us one step
closer to appropriate
therapies - specifically
those directed at the
infectious agent. This is
what scientific truths will
bring- true hope and true
help for patients
worldwide!”

All of the NCF's
donations go directly to
research via its Research
Grant Program. Since 2002,
over $325,000 has been
directed to fund research
concepts that have
originated from the NCF.
Unlike other CFIDS/ME
groups, the NCF orchestrates
it own research program by
funding researchers who are
willing to undertake and
execute the conceptual ideas
formulated and directed by
the foundation. This is
carefully selected medical
research. Several
researchers have commented
that what we are funding is
in-fact “theoretical
medicine.” This may be true!
The NCF has chosen a unique
path and approach and we are
fortunate to be achieving
significant medical research
results. We will continue on
this path.....the road less
traveled! Please consider to
“help us help you” by
donating to the NCF's
research grant program.